Many different types of turntables which carry apparatus platforms are known to the art. Examples of such turntables include turntables which carry radar antennas on ships, and turntables which carry cameras mounted on apparatus platforms for the purpose of filming moving objects. A common function of these turntables is to hold the radar antenna or the camera in a given position irrespective of how the supportive surface moves in relation to the radar antenna and the camera. Such turntables are also used for other types of apparatus than those mentioned.
Weather guards which protect the mechanical parts of the turntable are also known to the art. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 3,352,521 discloses a weather guard for protecting the mechanics of a turntable suspension arrangement, whereas German Patent Specification DE 3,410,158 discloses a weather guard for protecting the mechanism of a pendulating indicator.
The drawbacks with such weather guards is that they are unable to function effectively in more extreme weather conditions, such as ice, snow, rain, and storms of various kinds. It is known that ice and freezing rain will build coatings of ice on apparatus platforms, for instance, which will not only place strain on the drive systems, bearings and carrier arms of such platforms, but will also damage the rubber, plastic and thin-plate lip seals mounted on the turntable, among other things.